Dark Witness (29 page)

With that Duncan walked out of the house, down the steps and swung himself up on the snowmobile. He started the engine, but Billy Zuni had one last thing to say to Melody. He walked up to her; he towered over her.

"Make sure there's a light, for Hannah," he said. "She's going to be afraid if she wakes up in the dark. As soon as she can understand, tell her I'm going to get her home. Tell her that, okay."

Melody nodded, afraid to speak to the man who had threatened her life.

"Billy," Duncan called.

Billy swung his head and looked behind him. The guy looked like an idiot in his huge helmet. He looked back at Melody.

"Tell her I promised everything will be okay. She'll believe you if you say that I promised."

"Alright," Melody whispered.

"Billy!" Duncan gunned the throttle. The engine sounded sick. When Billy got close Duncan said: "Swing up behind me. I know it's tight quarters, but it will keep you warm. Body heat will do that."

Billy swung on behind Duncan, hesitated, and then put his arms around the man's middle. Melody backed into the house, but didn't shut the door. Teresa came down and put her arm around the young woman. Glenn stopped his work to watch and Robert peered out of his window upstairs. Duncan leaned into the machine and they were gone.

Behind them, everyone held their own thoughts. Some wondered when they would return, others wondered if a doctor would truly come all this way to see Hannah, and some of them wished that they would never come back at all. The only people who didn't think about Duncan and Billy or where they had gone were Hannah Sheraton and the prophetess, Pea.

***

Andre and Archer found that they were going to have to wait for proprietor of the Moose Tangle Thrift Shop to appear. A sign in the window announced that he would be back soon. In Alaska, that could mean an hour or in spring. Andre and Archer split the difference and gave it overnight, passing the time in the local bar where they had a burger and Internet access. Archer caught up on a few clients, checked in with Faye, and pretty much tried to keep his mind off Josie. If he had understood the communiqué correctly Josie was hurt, not dead; she was safe, not comfortable; she was hoping they would meet up soon; given their traveling companion soon was relative. Best of all, she had a lead she was hoping would pan out. The men slept well and in the morning the proprietor of The Moose Tangle Thrift Shop showed up at ten-thirty. He opened the door in his pajamas and unaffected by the cold that blew in with Andre and Archer.

"Well ain't this special." He took in Andre in all his glory. "Been a while since we seen any troopers up this way. I'll tell you right now, I won that jackhammer free and clear, so if George Putnam up there said I stole it, that just ain't so. It was mine to sell, and I sold it."

"No, we're not here about a jackhammer," Andre assured him.

"Don't tell me Maria's been calling you guys. We were never married proper and I'm not buying that stuff about palimoney. I ain't got no palimoney for her and that's the truth."

"Palimony." Archer corrected him.

"That's what I said. I ain't got none of it. You think money grows on trees? Business ain't good, and I got robbed not too long back and–”

"We're not here about any of that," Andre interrupted. "Do you want to put on some shoes or something? It's kind of cold in here."

The man shook his head, "No, I'm good. Can't think of anything else I might have done, so just tell me what you want and then you can get out of here. You're bad for business."

Andre raised his chin to Archer who took out his cell and brought up a picture of the glove.

"We're looking for some kids. A boy and a girl. We think they were in a wreck about a hundred miles north of here. They would have been with a trucker named Green."

The man shook his head, "Don't know the name."

"Have you seen two teenagers traveling together in, say, the last three or four weeks."

He shrugged, "Not that I'd remember. I don't pay real good attention to people. They come in and sometimes they buy stuff. Most times they come in to see if I want to buy their old trash. Sometimes I do. Most often I don't. Money doesn't grow on trees. You can tell Marie that. She's the one who sent you, right?"

"Do you remember this?" Archer put the phone in front of the man's face.

He stepped back and grumbled: "Don't need to shove it in my face, there, partner."

He tipped his head. He pulled his mouth to one side and then the other. He took one finger and rubbed the side of his nose.

"You know what? I do remember that. Well, not just that one glove, but a pair of 'em. Sold 'em about three months ago."

"Did you sell them to a young man? Blue eyes, blond hair. He would have called you dude?" Archer asked. "He would have been traveling with a light skinned black girl with short hair dyed blond."

"Nope, don't recall anyone like that. Besides, those gloves were big. That's one of the things I remember about them. Paul Bunyan gloves. I told that joke to the guy who bought 'em. He didn't get it. Dumb shit. Just kind of stared at me. Blinkin' and blinkin' and wipin' his nose on his sleeve like a little kid."

"That's not the trucker," Andre noted. "He was small."

"What else to you remember about this guy?"

The man snorted. "What's not to remember? He was something. Big as a house. I'm not kidding. A house. And his face was scary."

"Mean scary?" Andre asked.

"No, weird-scary. Like the whole of one side was all deformed or something. Red. Like a big red scar but real thick. Looked like he'd been tanned, I tell you. And then the other side looked all smooth like a baby's butt. I sure wouldn't want to wake up and see that face staring back at me."

"Does he live around here?" Archer asked.

"Naw. He passes through now and again. Seen him maybe twice in the last year. He comes down to get supplies and clothes. Sometimes he gets clothes for women but he's not all funny that way. The clothes he gets wouldn't fit him. He always had a set amount of money. No more and no less. He doesn't know to haggle. Told you, dumb as a rock."

"Has he got a family?" Archer asked.

"Kind of. He told me that he lives with a bunch of other folk up the river some."

"Do you have any idea where?" Andre asked.

"What do you think I am, the census taker?"

"Just thought I'd ask," Andre pulled out a card and handed it to the man. "If you remember anything."

"Yeah, I know the drill," the man said. "We done here?"

"We are unless you have anything else for us."

"Not me, buddy." The two men were almost out the door when he called after them. "Might try down at the landing. He comes in by boat. Someone down there might know where he hails from?"

"Thanks," Andre said and held the door for Archer.

Ten minutes later they had the information they wanted. Archer was going to see Josie sooner than he expected because they were both headed to the same place: Clara's Landing.

***

"Are you okay back there?"

Duncan knew the answer even before he asked Billy the question. An hour earlier Billy's grip went slack, and his head fell so that his cheek rested against Duncan's back. Now with this last bump of the snowmobile Billy's entire weight shifted so Duncan hockey-stopped the big machine. Duncan shut down the engine and the silence was deafening. He caught Billy just before he fell off.

"Get off me, man," Billy pushed him away.

"Not doing too good, are you?" Duncan swung off the snowmobile.

"I'm okay, dude. Just tired. Where are we?" Billy did a three sixty, checking out the surroundings as if he expected to find something familiar.

"The middle of nowhere," Duncan said. "Stand up. Come on. Get off, and get the blood flowing."

"No. Get back on, man. We've got to go." Billy motioned to him. "What do you think? Another hour or two or what?"

Billy was pale as a ghost and almost frozen solid. Pity they hadn't thought to get him a hat before they left. Cold could befuddle even the sharpest mind, and Billy's was not in that category.

"No can do, Billy. I'm the one driving. I need a breather," Duncan said. "Come on, come on. Up and at 'em. Five minutes won't kill you."

Duncan laughed a little. Billy was annoyed, but he also knew Duncan was right. They had been on that sorry excuse for a snowmobile way too long. Billy swung off bent over and pounded on his thighs. His jeans were stiff and crusted with cold, and his muscles were so cramped they were painful.

"Does it ever stop snowing?" Billy asked.

"I think it's pretty. You probably didn't get much snow there in California."

"That's stupid, dude."

"Yes, I suppose it is. Just trying to lighten the mood," Duncan said as he paced. "I guess I misjudged how far we had to go. It's so much easier in spring, but spring isn't just around the corner, is it? Maybe I should make a fire. Just to warm us up a bit. We'll take an hour or so."

"No, man, I'm telling you. We're going," Billy insisted.

"Okay, okay. I've just got to check the oil. Sometimes I have to add some when I've had it going too long. It will be harder with you sitting on it. Go sit over there."

Billy looked around. Duncan was motioning to a tree stump that looked like it had been hit by lightning. He went over, sat down and massaged his legs while Duncan whistled and dug into his pack and then fiddled with the engine.

Billy couldn't look at Duncan without thinking about the night he said he was going to marry Hannah, or the fact that her leg wasn't broken at all, or about that night at dinner when Hannah had acted like she was happier with those people than she was with him. He couldn't get past the fact that when he left her, Hannah didn't know who he was.

"I thought you said there was a doctor pretty close."

"Have some faith, Billy. I'm doing the best I can." Duncan got up from his crouch and dusted off his hands. "Yes, I'm just doing what I can to make sure you're taken care of."

"The sooner we go the sooner you're rid of me," Billy said.

"That is the truth," Duncan answered. "A pit stop and we'll be on our way. Do you have to go?"

"No. Just hurry, dude. I'm freezing."

"We wouldn't want you to freeze to death." Duncan muttered as he walked into the woods. Billy waited. He looked over his shoulder, but he didn't see Duncan. He raised his voice:

"You sure you know what you're doing, dude?"

"No worries on that score, Billy," Duncan called back.

Duncan pulled on a tree branch, testing its strength with his weight. It was solid and it wasn't going to come down easily. He kicked at the snow and uncovered a mass of fallen tree limbs and rocks. He picked up a branch that was dead, brittle, and hollow. He tossed it aside and picked up another that was stunted and knotted and heavy. He bent one more time and picked up a stone. It was smooth and pleasing in the hand. He tossed the stone, pulled down his zipper, relieved himself, and then walked back using the tree branch as a hiking stick.

Duncan high stepped through the snow and got to the place where he had left Billy. It was a beautiful day really, dark and crisp and quiet. The fact that Billy had shut up made it perfect. Then he saw why Billy had stopped talking. He was hunched over, his arms crossed as he slept sitting up. Duncan hunkered down in front of him, steadying himself with the big branch.

"That's a good trick," Duncan muttered.

He stood up and stepped away. He hated to do it but he really had to wake Billy Zuni and get on with it. Duncan planted his feet. He held the heavy branch with both hands and pulled it back over his shoulder and barked:

"Billy!"

Billy shot upright and turned toward the sound of his name. Duncan swung away. The wood made contact with a sickening thud and the force threw Billy off the stump. Billy was crumpled on the ground, unmoving, his blood ruby red against the beautiful white snow.

Duncan stood there, breathing hard, stunned that he had actually done what he had done. He laughed a little. He giggled thinking that maybe he should hit Billy again. Or, perhaps, that would be overkill. He laughed harder because that truly was funny. Yeah, he was a funny guy. So, if you kill someone in the forest and they are never found is that someone really dead? His face fell. His eyes hooded. That was no riddle. The answer was yes.

Duncan tossed aside the branch, bent down and stripped the jacket and shirt and sweater and pants off Billy Zuni's body. Waste-not-want-not out here in the wilderness. He left the shoes because they weren't worth much. He rolled Billy's clothes into a ball, and tucked them under his arm. Billy looked so peaceful that Duncan believed he had done him a favor. The poor guy had never had a moment's rest if the story he had told about the murderous man from Albania was true. Now he would have an eternity of it thanks to God and Duncan.

Deuteronomy 33:27
. The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out your enemies before you, saying, 'Destroy them
.

Done and done.

Driven out. Destroyed.

Duncan went back to the snowmobile and put Billy's clothes in the saddlebag. He was about to leave when two things dawned on him. First, he really shouldn't take the yellow jacket back to the compound. It was too identifiable. It also occurred to Duncan that he should say something over Billy Zuni. Everyone deserved to be sent off with a few words from a holy man.

Duncan pulled the yellow jacket out of his saddlebag and walked back over to the body. Already, Billy's skin was taking on the blue-purple tinge of frozen flesh. He tossed the yellow jacket on the ground and then crossed his hands low, bowed his head, stared straight at Billy.

"You should never have said you were going to kill me – dude."

CHAPTER 25

Mama Cecilia enjoyed her time on the boat with the old man. He told her stories of his life and his children. They talked of Mama's son and her granddaughter. He was kind, but eventually he told her the truth. They would not come back to her home unless they had nowhere else to go. Mama was not angry because it was good to hear someone be both honest and kind.